Executives of Revel, the city's 12th casino, toasted the opening with blueberry smoothies on a deck facing the ocean.

The $2.4 billion resort is being counted on to help revive the sagging fortunes of the nation's second-largest gambling market.

Revel had to overcome numerous obstacles in order to reach Monday's opening. Three key executives working on the project died in a plane crash in 2008, the project ran out of money during the recession, and it only got completed with the help of state tax incentives.

It is Atlantic City's only non-smoking casino resort and the only one to fully embrace the ocean, with floor-to-ceiling views of the coast that are considered a no-no in other gambling halls.